Method of operating a lighter-than-air dirigible



Sept. 3, 1929. F. B. MANY 1,727,210

I METHOD OF OPERATING A LIGHTER THAN AIR DIRiGIBLE Filed Jan. 9, 1926 jig/.1

r J G 17 mgr/Z65 3%? 5 Patented gept. 3, 1929.

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nnenn B. MANY, on CLEVELAND, onro.

TEETH-10D 01F OPERATING A LIGHTER-THAI I-AER DIRIGIBLE.

Application filed January 9, 1926. Serial No. 80,310.

The objects of the invention are to provide a pro. and eiiicicnt method and means for regulating the ount or expansion and sent: action oi the gas in the gas ba s or envelopes of a lighter than air airship in such a manner that the amount of expansion of the will never be greater than the bag or envelope can endure without bursting and the voh'uuc the expanded will never exceed the capacity of the bag or bags to contain the same. 7

The result of this action, therefore, will be such that it will permit the bag to rise to any height without becoming expanded by the direct action of the rays oi the sun to a bursting p0 it and also pern'iitting of perfect control or the expansion thereof at lower levels. Also at higher levels the direct action of the rays of the suncan not, by the swift rise in temperature caused thereby, 'ncrease the amount of buoyi soy or the ship and cause it to rise rapidly, nor can the fall of the ship to lower lev els: dccre the amount of buoyancy of the bag; or cause the ship to "fall rapidly to a still lower level. a

further advantage is obtained in the fact the gas in the bag will be preserved d not be, permitted to escape, which is I great importance when expensive gas such helium is employed to inflate the bag. To acct mplish this result a multiple number i on as are provided which are enclosed in external envelope and each bag is supwith sul'llcient amount of gas to give it "equircd volume to nearly float the air ship at or above the level of the ground at a predetermined degree of temperature.

T he capacity of the bag is such that a much greater volume of the gas can be contained therein without danger of bursting the bag and hence the bag can rise to a great elevation and be expanded by the direct raysof the sun without danger of bursting.

he volume of gas in each bag can be increased to increase the buoyancy thereof to the elevating point by the application of the heated gases from the exhaust of the explosion engines to the envelope about the bags to expand the bags to any desired size, so that the airship can not only be mace to float at any desired level, but may also be made to rise quickly to any desired level, and can be made to tell to any desired level without the use of the elevating and depressing rudders. By

lessening or cutting out the supply of heat thereto the temperature supplied to the bags from the exhaust may also be much greater than could be supplied by the action of the direct rays o1 the sun so that this action will never be sullicient to elevate the airship or to return it in the air at a high elevation; but the elevation of the ship may always be con trolled by controlled use of the heated products of exhaust from the engines. The er:- lJtlUSil gases maybe applied internally to the outer envelope and thus apply the exhaust gases uniformly to all the bags at the same, time, or the envelope may be divided into sections and the heated gases may be distributed as may be desired to any one of the chambers thereof as desired it the airship shows a tendency to rise or fall at one end more than another.

The invention is exemplified in the accompanying drawings in which one method of carrying out the improvement is disclosed.

ln these drawings, Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section of an airship in which a multiple number of gas bags are enclosed in a common envelope. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the envelope divided into a number of charm bers in which the enclosed gas bags can be heated separately or in groups.

In these views, A represents an external envelope, l3, B, B, represent a multiple number of gas bags mounted thereunder; C, C are explosion engines which are employed for the propulsion of the ship; D, D, are exhaust pipes leading therefrom to discharge ircely into the open air. E, E are branch pipes leading from the exhaust to discharge into the open space in the envelope around the gas bags to heat the same, and F, F, shown in Fig. 2 are branch pipes leading to the chambers G, G, in the outer envelope from the exhaust; G, G, are valves controlling the respective passages.

In operating the device the bags are only partially filled with a buoyant gas of a charactor that is not inflammable when subjected to high degrees of temperature such as helium. It is not intended to inflate the bags to a point where their buoyancy will float the ship, but to a point where by subsequent expansion by means of heating them they will become sui'iiciently expanded and buoyant to lift the ship to any desired altitude. This result is accomplished by enveloping the bags in the heated exhaust from the engines, by discharging it into the external envelope and the supply of exhaust can be lessened in amount or entirel cut off if desired by the use of the valves or G, when it is desired to sink the airship to a lower level, thus making the vertical control of the airship-independent of the use of the elevating and depressing rudders.

When the ship is to be carried to a very high elevation, as when crossing a mountain range where the direct action of the rays of the sun would otherwise tend to expand the bags to the bursting point or to such a point that the ship could not be withdrawn to lower levels, the bags are supplied with a comparatively smallamount of gas so that the temperature deprived from the suns rays would not expand them sufliciently to float the airship at that level and the further expansion or contraction of the bags is accomplished by suitable control of the heated exhaust from the engines, which being of a very high 'degree of temperature will permit of the necessary amount of expansion. The products of exhaust being heated to a high degree will also fill the envelope and cause it to become buoyant.

In this manner the expensive helium will be preserved and need not be released to reduce the amount of buoyancy of the airship and the supply of exhaust gas being controllable by means of valves, the bags or envelope will never be heated to the bursting point.

Thermometers or thermostats of any desirable sort may be employed to indicate the temperature desired or to operate the valves automatically to obtain predetermined elevations of the air ship or the valves may be conveniently placed so as to be accessible to the operator or operators of the airship and elevation thereof.

Having described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. The hereinbefore described method of raising and lowering an airship propelled by explosion engines consisting in, providing a multiple number of gas receptacles enclosed in a common envelope, supplying a bouyant gas to said receptacles thatwill be insutlicient to raise the ship at normal temperatures and surrounding the gas receptacles in the envelope with heated products of combustion from the exhaust of said explosion engines to expand said gases in said receptacles until the buoyancy thereof will elevate said airship, and thereafter adjusting the supply of said exhaust from said engines to said receptacles to adjust the amount of buoyancy thereof and thereby the elevation and depression of the airship.

2. The hereinbefore described method of raising and lowering an air ship propelled by explosion engines consistingin, providing a multiple number of gas holding envelopes enclosed. in a common envelope, and a corresponding number of surrounding exhaust receiving receptacles therein, supplyingthe gas holding envelopes with a buoyant gas that will be insufiicient to raise the ships at normal temperatures and supplying the exhaust receptacles in said common envelope with the heated products of combustion from the exhaust of said explosion engines to expand said gases in said receptacles and envelopes until the bouyancy thereof will elevate said airships.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto set my hand this 21st day of November 1925.

' FRANK B. MANY. 

